The Iraqi Children Foundation funds the operating costs of a ”Safe Space” for adolescent girls in Mosul. This center provides social and psychosocial support for vulnerable girls, as well as educational support and a sense of belonging. Many girls in this area have previously been displaced and are only now returning to Mosul. There is an increased need for support for girls experiencing negative coping mechanisms, trauma, psychological distress and gender-based violence. Girls at the center have the opportunity to participate in a wide var…
"Nothing is more challenging than working to remove explosive ordnance, except perhaps challenging societal norms as a woman in a male-dominated sector," says Noor Munther, an Iraqi woman working in mine action. Ms. Munther has a law degree. Instead of pursuing a career in law after graduation, she embarked on a journey in the mine action sector, motivated and inspired to break barriers in a field traditionally led and managed by men. She challenged the local traditions to break gender stereotypes. Munther joined an explosive ord…
As part of the project “Multaka: Museum as Meeting Point ”, Syrian and Iraqi refugees in Germany are being trained as museum guides so that they can then provide guided museum tours for Arabic-speaking refugees in their native language. "Multaka" (Arabic for “meeting point”) also aims to facilitate the interchange of diverse cultural and historical experiences.
To nurture the young minds of internally displaced families, Al-Ekhwa Primary School in Sulaymaniyah established with UNICEF support an Early Childhood Education (ECE) classroom that is attached to the primary school. Funded by Germany through KfW Development Bank, UNICEF's ECE programmes prioritize a holistic approach to development. From interactive playgroups to engaging preschools, these initiatives go beyond academics, addressing cognitive, social, emotional, and physical aspects of child development. Muhammad and Abrar are real-lif…
When she was a little girl, Iran supreme leader Ruhollah Khomeini gave her nightmares. Born in Baghdad in 1980 — the same year the Iraq-Iran war started — Zainab Al-Fatlawi remembers being glued to one of the two government-run TV channels at cartoon time. But Iraqi television producers always aired graphic war updates just before the cartoons started, she said. "They showed dead bodies with dramatic music," Al-Fatlawi said, eyes getting wider. "Hands cut off, heads smashed, and that music was really scary. "And Khomeni,…